I was just listening to James Blake singing his latest hit Retrograde and I realised that the previous Pope abdicated during Mercury Retrograde. Now many of you may think this is of no consequence, or you know nothing about retrograde planets. I am not here to teach about such things, I’ll just say this, that Mercury Retrograde has affected my life in the past and has also affected my children’s lives. This last retrograde that ended on 17th March, my daughter’s washing machine broke down and my car blew a radiator. Now of course these things happen at any time, not just when Mercury is retrograde; however I am always careful not to sign any contracts or start a new venture during that time. I did once sign a contract to sell my house and the contract fell over.

Now if Pope Benedict knew anything about retrograde planets, he may well have especially chosen this time with the knowledge that things could go awry with the new Pope. I’m not suggesting that he did, just saying that it is a possibility; in which case Francis may have a lot to deal with concerning the goings on in his last country of residence and the issue of paedophile priests.

I have noted that one of the Cardinals who helped in choosing a new Pope says that paedophilia is not a crime but a disease and should be treated as such. Now let’s pretend that he is right. I wonder how he would feel about that if he had been continually raped as a child. And does this line of reasoning excuse the moving on of priests to other diocese to offend again?

Now as far as I know, only one priest has been jailed in Australia for paedophilia and that is Father F. I call him Father FUCK, because that is what he did to so many people. He fucked their bodies and their lives. I apologise for being so course, but this priest’s actions were coarse and so I have to be coarse in writing about him. In Ireland after 9 years of investigation by the Ryan Enquiryonly a very fewpriests has been convicted/jailed, so it almost looks like the Cardinal is right. Also there were several other enquiries such as the Dublin Enquiry, lasting years where hundreds if not thousands of priest were investigated.Perhaps paedophilia is not a crime when committed by a Catholic priest. But why is that? Why is it not even frowned upon or dealt with in the same manner as John Doe or Joe Blow? As I see things a priest should be more aware of wrong doing than Joe Blow would be. Joe Blow may be a lowly spiritually evolved soil, but a priest is setting himself up in high esteem and beyond reproach. He is taking the moral high ground, just by becoming a priest. What has Christianity taught him? What has the bible taught him? What has life taught him and what has the Law taught him? Nothing as it seems. Therefore he is not in a position to dictate to his parishioners what is right and what is wrong.

Sophistical arguments have been around from time immemorial. They can at frist blush appear very convincing, even rational, but they can best be identified by some of their common characteristics: they will invariably contain ad hominem arguments, concoct assumptions and present them as facts when in reality they are distorted or blown up facts out of context or out of the historical record, out of those false assumptions reprehensible and slanderous insinuations and innuendos will then be fashioned.

The above argumentation has all those characteristics. It begins with astrology or the stars dictating human destiny. Extreme rationalists and logical positivists will of course readily brand this as sheer superstition and ignorance usurping the field of science which explains how things really work in nature, but in all fairness it has to be admitted that most religions of the world (including the Christian) accept astrology as quite plausible since the created universe, besides implying a cosmic mind and a providential God, shows an incredible amount of interconnectedness: everything seems to be related to everything else. The magi coming to Bethlehem were surely astrologers as well as astronomers. What remains dubious however is to jump from the position of the stars and planets to prophecy or predicting the future. The future difficulties of Pope Francis I are predicted as per position of stars and planets, it is also insinuated that the past Pope had something to do with choosing this particular time, out of ill will toward his successor.Bizzare! Indeed prophecy is a misunderstood religious phenomenon: it is misguidedly thought to be the predicting of the future but what it is in reality is the courageous warning of people of the consequences that will ensue if they violae the natural law and rationality and follow their unbridled desires.

As far as ad hominem attacks, they are usually cavalierly proffered and are meant to substitute for a well reasoned argumentation. Notice the insinuation that pedophilia may not be considered a crime in the Catholic Church, simply thrown against the wall as a fact, which it is not, and then followed by the disingenuous question “and why is that?” One proposes the question and the answer. Notice, if you will, that the Australian pedophile priest is not identified by name but simply charged anonymously and egregiously insulted with his name changed from whatever it might be to father Fuck, thus branding by innuendo all the half a million or so priests of the Catholic Church, and then apologies are graciously offered to the readers for the coarseness of the description, for which the priest in question is also responsible. Never mind that, independent of whether or not all of the offending priests have been duly prosecuted and punished, the vast majority of them (97%) are not offenders, never mind that of the sexual predators among them (some 3%) a tiny minority (that can be counted on one’s hand) can properly be called pedophiles, as has been shown by reliable statistics and reliable researchers documented in a previous article (The Last Acceptable Bias), never mind the glass being 97% full, we wish to concentrate on the 3% empty, never mind that the great majority of Catholics not only do not condone sexual predation and abuse but are just as shocked at those actions by the 3% of offenders, consider sexual abuse of minors a reprehensible crime and would like those crimes to be prosecuted and punished to the fullest extent of secular and canon law, never mind that thanks to the previous Pope mechanisms are now firmly in place for zero tolerance for those crimes and the immediate defrocking of those who are identified as sexual predators, never mind that the practice is common to even a greater extent in other religions and denominations and most of phedophilia crimes occurr in families.

Either those facts are not known or they are simply ignored which makes one suspect that one is dealing with bias, perhaps even hatred. There is no listeneing, no attempt at a lucid rational dialogue. What there is ax grinding which has been there indeed since the times of the gnostic heresty, and the obvious painting of the Catholic Church and its two thousand year history in the worst possible light, all along parading as moral guide on the pedestal of the moral high ground as judge, accuser, prosecutor. Henry VIII jumps to mind here turning the table around...

Indeed, there is nothing too surprising here. In fact I predict that the bias will continue to be shown in future articles in all its venemous nastiness.

Fortunately, in a publication of opinion, one is allowed to express one’s opinions and one is also allowed to rebut that opinion and show how misguided and biased and slanderous it may be, for one is entitled to one’s interpretation and one’s opinion but not to invent one’s facts. The exercise is called free speech and it is the life-blood of any democratic institution, as John Stuart Mill has well taught us. Not to understand that much is to have misunderstood the very nature of a journal of opinion.

One of the ignored abused

2013-03-23 17:27:35

I cannot understand why this Professor Paparella is always coming to the defence of pedophiles. There is no reason for him to use abusive language when making a citique of others writings. This is so disrespectful.
How is Professor paperella so confident that the vast majority of catholic Preists are NOT offender? Not even the Royal Comission knows the figures yet. Does our professor Paprella have some monopoly on a divine connection to the truth? I think pedophilla has to be cleaned up in the church as a top priority so others dont have to suffer as I have suffered.

Emanuel Paparella

2013-03-23 22:45:46

Dear ignored abused,
Obviously you don’t read and ponder messages very carefully, given that, far from coming to the defense of pedophile as you claim, which is sheer slander and a lie on your part, despite your victimhood, I have repeatedly written that I and the vast majority of Catholics are not only scandalized by the sexual abuses perpetrated by some of its priests (3% of themas documented in my previous article) but advocate that ALL THOSE PRIESTS WHO HAVE SO ABUSED THEIR OFFICE AND VIOLATED THEIR VOWS BE REMOVED FROM THE PRIESTHOOD, PROSECUTED AND PUNISHED TO THE FULL EXTENT OF THE LAW.

I will be pleasantly surprised if you will now proceed to ignore or refuse to acknowledge this message too; if one does not like the massager, ignore the message, or vice versa. So one takes you at your word but one also begins to suspect that despite your anonymous charges of being abused and ignored, which are indeed regretful and unfortunate granting that they occurred and with which any decent human being ought to commiserate, the regretful impression that those sophistic tactics leave with the attentive reader is not of one of good faith but rather that the abuse may have regretfully left you with an inability to be objective and refrain from bias and misrepresentation, understandable perhaps but not for that reason excusable or true.

I suggest that the best way to defend your victimhood rhetorically is to refrain from painting a whole half million priests (the 97% who do not abuse minors) with a wide brush in an attempt to convince people that the whole lot of them are pedophiles, which is certainly not true. Those tactics weaken your accusatory arguments and makes your strident victimhood rather suspect. Finally consider this: if the Church admitted as its members only saints and perfect people, very few, if any, would be able to become part of it.

Ms. Eleana,
Your assertions are very accurate. However, I would assert that paedophilia is a dis-ease and a punishable crime.
I also agree that a Priest, Pastor, Reverend, Rabbi...etc. who corruptibly acts upon this dis-ease and crime against someone who holds them esteem, and a place of honor and leadership is an even more heinous Human Being than someone who does not profess, and guide others, within a Religion. Within a moral and ethical sanctuary. Within an environment of Worship and Higher Thinking and Human Values.
Someone who is Raped, and or abused and used by a paedophile is forever scarred, diminished and damaged for the rest of their Lives. They get a LifeTime sentence when the offender, very often do not.
The Church must address this great and corrosive Heart of Darkness within its midst.

Eleana

2013-03-24 13:30:51

Emanuel, I haven't fully made sense of your last comment, however and correct me if I am wrong, but it appears to me that you think that writing in lowercase somehow, we the reader either cannot comprehend you, but we will if it's written in caps; or, you are in a taring rage and thumping on the keyboard. Let us put all that aside and read what you have said. Alright we read that you condemn ALL THOSE PRIESTS WHO HAVE SO ABUSED THEIR OFFICE AND VIOLATED THEIR VOWS BE REMOVED FROM THE PRIESTHOOD, PROSECUTED AND PUNISHED TO THE FULL EXTENT OF THE LAW. Can we say therefore that we ‘get’ that?
“ So one takes you at your word but one also begins to suspect that despite your anonymous charges of being abused and ignored, which are indeed regretful and unfortunate granting that they occurred and with which any decent human being ought to commiserate, the regretful impression that those sophistic tactics leave with the attentive reader is not of one of good faith but rather that the abuse may have regretfully left you with an inability to be objective and refrain from bias and misrepresentation, understandable perhaps but not for that reason excusable or true.”

Let me especially pick this ….” but one also begins to suspect that despite your anonymous charges of being abused and ignored, which are indeed regretful and unfortunate……...” What do readers make of this part comment? You can read it in context above. At best it is patronising and at worst, it contradicts what he said in rage when writing in caps. So are we to assume that what he write in caps must be ignored as it does not represent his true feelings?

…..,”granting that they occurred and with which any decent human being ought to commiserate,” Commiserate is a rather formal word to use under such circumstances. I would have thought much more feeling words could have been used by a sincere writer. Emanuel comes across as UNsympathetic towards survivors of abuse. Perhaps we are reading between the lines, or a vibe is lifting off the print in front of us.

As for that figure of 97 % fat free, That’s just about what it is. It’s far more likely to be 97% of priests are either paedophiles, homosexual or abusers of a violent kind. At least that’s what is emerging in Australia. All I want is for those priests to suffer threefold, because they got away with it for soooooooooooo long and we the people, the police force judges and Parliament have allowed it to happen by not providing a sacred space for people to truly heal and be able to love themselves again. And to prosecute every molester, rapist and committer of violent acts. I would be happy to see them hang from their penises for as long as their victims suffered. Just so they know what suffering is like.

Emanuel, you come across as a tired, bitter old man, full of venom and resentment. I probably do as well, but I have good cause and you do it for entertainment, or habit. Some people aren’t happy unless they have something to complain about, so they complain about everything that they get tetchy over. You certainly do defend the Catholic Church, but I denounce it. I have good cause, you do not have good cause to defend. What are you defending?

Eleana

2013-03-24 13:53:34

Now to reply to your fist comment, Emanuel. This is fact: I have not read this in mainstream media, I have listened to the victims speaking, now mounting to hundreds. I have heard their words, seen their faces, seen their bodies shaking, heard what priest did to them, hear them tell how the priest ordered them to take down their pants, how they masturbated them and then buggered them as very young boys and the priest all the while saying that god wants this to happen. How a priest told a very young boy to kneel in front of him; he thought he was going to be asked to pray. Instead the priest pulled out his penis and ordered the boy to” suck his dick” Quote. I have heard women weep so much they can't speak, recalling the multitude of times they were overpowered by a priest and told that god had directed them to do it and how dirty they felt and confused as to why god would want such a thing. 40 people have committed suicide in Australia that is known as a direct result of gross paedophile acts. I said Father F as his name has been suppressed, he is known as Father F and I call him Father Fuck, as I want to use the worst possible word for his name as that is exactly what he did to a very many people. He fucked them and fucked up their lives forever! Do NOT EVER contradict me on facts. I see, I hear from the victim. I know. You degrade your standing here by the first comment you left. Makes me wonder who you are. Disgust!

Emanuel Paparella

2013-03-24 15:30:53

Dear Mr. Ignored Abused, I sincerely fail to see how advocating that “ALL THOSE PRIESTS WHO HAVE SO ABUSED THEIR OFFICE AND VIOLATED THEIR VOWS BE REMOVED FROM THE PRIESTHOOD, PROSECUTED AND PUNISHED TO THE FULL EXTENT OF THE LAW” is the equivalent of intellectualizing the issue of sexual misconduct against minors among the Catholic clergy or any other clergy or group of people for that matter. I think that the severe application of the law is an appropriate and far from intellectual rationalization, a pragmatic approach to the issue. Moreover, pedophilia whose dictionary definition is sexual assault against children before puberty is a misnomer when applied generally to all the 3% of offending priests as a blanked accusation against all of them as has been attempted here, and as already pointed out with documentation in a previous Ovi article.

In any case thank you to you and Ms. Irving for proving my points on sophistic arguments and bias and slander and demonizing. Indeed the first sign of an ugly sophistical argument is when it readily turns into an ad hominem demonizing diatribe and when opinions as concocted facts are egregiously thrown against the wall hoping that they will somehow stick, and when those actions act even when pointed out are never apologized or regretted, if anything they are doubled down.

I submit that such reprehensible tactics are also condemnable, even when presented by anybody concerned under the guise of of free speech and in alleged defense of justice and fairness, and those who support them openly or tolerate them in silence ought to at the very least question the motives behind their false assumptions. Cordially.

Leah Sellers

2013-03-24 18:08:20

Ms. Eleana,
Your associating the beginning of your piece with Mercury Retrograde was also very accurately Wise. Because an Individual who has been Raped or evilly seduced, used and abused by a paedophile experiences the rest of their Lives in various and intermittent phases of Mercury in Retrograde.